Although Taiz governorate is rich in economic resources, it is suffering from a widespread collapse of its economic and social conditions. This collapse is highlighted by the following manifestations:
• The suffocating siege imposed by the Houthis on the city in particular and the governorate in general since 2015.
• A significant rise in unemployment and poverty rates.
• The migration of the governorate's youth to other governorates and abroad in search of job opportunities.
• The involvement of the governorate's youth in the ranks of political Islam movements, which led to the governorate being considered one of the most troubled governorates in terms of security and stability, and the widespread manifestations of armaments, violence, and extremism.
• Child labor: Children are seen scattered in the streets, markets, shops, workshops, and various liberal professions, working with low wages and returns.
• Begging: It has spread heavily and widely.
• Social deviations, such as cheating, theft, looting, fraud, and others.
• Dropping out of education classes at all stages.
• The widespread epidemics and diseases.
In order to confront all this, it is possible to return to exploiting the resources and economic components available in the governorate, which are many and numerous, which we discuss as follows:
1. In the Field of Agriculture and Related Activities:
According to the governorate’s Agriculture Office and other statistical information sources, such as the Central Statistics Organization, the arable area is estimated at about 1,234 km2, of which only 50% is exploited. It is also noteworthy that there are large green spaces spread on the edges of the governorate's valleys. This confirms that the arable areas exceed twice the estimated area of 1234 km2, in the case of reclamation of unexploited green lands and annexing them to agricultural lands, thus providing additional opportunities for agricultural development and related activities, confronting poverty and unemployment in the governorate, as well as effectively contributing to the food security of its population, and facing other economic challenges.
Also, when expanding agricultural activity and giving attention to it, other important opportunities can be provided, such as the development of livestock in its various varieties (cows, goats, sheep, and camels). In addition to providing other opportunities for economic activity, the most important of which are: beekeeping, honey production, and achieving a surplus that can be marketed to the markets of neighboring countries.
However, agricultural and other related activities face many challenges that must be confronted, the most important of which are:
• The siege imposed on the governorate for more than eight years, besides dividing it into three parts, each of which is controlled by an armed group and militias with different agendas due to the war that has been going on since 2015.
• The disappearance and evanescence of available water barriers and dams; the scarcity of water due to the depletion of groundwater; the scarcity of rains; and the torrential floods for crops and soil.
• The migration of the youth of the governorate from their villages to the cities of the various Yemeni governorates and to the countries of the region and other countries of the world in search of job opportunities.
2 -In the Field of Fisheries:
Taiz governorate has a vast and long coastal band with rich fish resources in the sea. The coastal strip of the governorate extends for a distance of about 138 km from Al-Khokha to Bab Al-Mandab, and along this strip, many fish landing areas are seen. This, in the event of improving the living conditions of fishermen and providing them with modern fishing methods, would provide many investment and employment opportunities in the field of marine activities associated with fishing and face a large percentage of unemployment and poverty, as well as enhancing food security for the population of the governorate.
“Taiz was a place for the emergence and development of manufacturing industries in Yemen, despite all the challenges that the governorate has faced due to several factors, the most important of which were the political and administrative centralization and the lack of distribution of power and wealth, which have been enshrined since after the September revolution of 1962.”
3- In the Field of Tourism Development:
Taiz Governorate is rich in tourist attractions, spread across all its administrative districts. In a study of the tourist attractions in the governorate that I carried out before the ongoing war, I listed the names of 102 of these tourist landmarks, which included various types of tourist attractions: historical, religious, sports, and beautifully shaped landscapes, as well as high-quality recreational beaches with their tourist characteristics that attract domestic and foreign tourism. In addition, the governorate is characterized by a diverse and comfortable climate in different seasons of the year, depending on the diversity of its terrain (mountains, plains, and sea beaches). It is also distinguished by the availability of a suitable social environment for practicing all types of tourism activities.
4 - In the Field of Industry and Trade:
Taiz is considered a center of industrial and commercial activity, as it formed a place for the emergence and development of manufacturing industries in Yemen despite all the challenges that the governorate has faced due to several factors, the most important of which were political and administrative centralization and the lack of distribution of power and wealth, which have been dedicated and enshrined since after the September revolution of 1962. So, due to the settlement factor of Yemeni manufacturing industries in Taiz, it has retained the components of industrial and commercial development. Further, in the event that it obtains self-management, in addition to the governorate’s diverse natural resources and economic components, the governorate is considered promising to attract more local and foreign industrial investments. Therefore, it is qualified to promote industrial and commercial development, especially since the governorate overlooks a promising area with a bridge project connecting the continents of Asia and Africa (Bab-Al-Mandab bridge—Djibouti) and the establishment of the Free Industrial City project at the tip of the bridge in the Bab-Al-Mandeb area.
5- In the Field of Mineral Resources:
Geological studies confirm the existence of many mineral ores and industrial rocks in Taiz governorate that have not been exploited until the present time. Likewise, there is also a cement factory in the Al-Barah area, which is currently out of operation because it is located in an area of military confrontation. Further, there are also stones for construction and building in bright shapes in the governorate, where stone extraction mines are widely spread, the most important of which are lime stones, marble rocks, and granite rocks. On the other hand, it is familiar and known to the governorate’s geological researchers, especially academics from Taiz University who specialize in geological studies, that there are mineral ores that have not yet been exploited, the most important of which are copper and nickel, lead, zinc, molybdenum, iron, titanium, natural zeolite minerals, and silica sand. All this confirms that the governorate contains many mineral ores and industrial rocks. Thus, in the event of flourishing industrial activity, as we indicated in the previous paragraph, and especially when implementing the Free Industrial City project, these raw materials will be of great importance for the advancement of the industrial sector in the governorate.
“The coastal strip of the governorate is characterized by the availability of suitable conditions for alternative and renewable energy generation projects from various solar and wind sources, as well as from the tidal movement that is characteristic of the Bab el-Mandeb area, given that it is the confluence area of the waters of the Red Sea with the waters of the Arabian Sea extending to the waters of the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean.”
6. In the Field of International Ports:
The governorate currently has two international airports: one is an old airport under Houthi control and is now out of operation, located in the north-eastern part of the governorate, while the other is a modern airport located in the western region of the governorate near the port of Mocha, which is being equipped and prepared for operation. Moreover, the governorate also has the port of Mocha, which is one of the oldest international seaports in the Peninsula and the Gulf region, but it suffers from some problems and challenges hindering its work. It is noteworthy that this port is distinguished above all Yemeni ports by its proximity to the global maritime trade line (Bab Al-Mandeb line) as well as being considered the closest port in Yemen to the Strait. The distance between the port and the international sea line is only 6 km. Therefore, if it is qualified for navigation and maritime transport, it will play an important role in serving the economy of the governorate and the national economy as well. In the current circumstances, it can be a qualitative addition to Yemeni ports. Thus, all of them are of great importance for international trade, considering that many important international ports are adjacent to them. In addition to being of great importance for international maritime routes connecting three continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe, they also play an important and distinctive role for international maritime transport. The port and airport of Mocha, if they are taken care of together and the movement of air and sea transport through them is stimulated, can play an important role in breaking the siege on Taiz, in addition to the positive effects they can have in stimulating investment in them and securing large cash flows for the benefit of the governorate’s economy and Yemen as a whole.
7. In the Field of Energy:
Taiz Governorate has many prerequisite components for generating electrical power. There is the hydroelectric power station, which contributed to covering a high percentage of the electricity reserve that was being collected in the central station in Dhamar, to be redistributed to the governorates of the republic before the ongoing war. It has been out of operation due to the war since 2015 and has not been restarted until now. The coastal strip of the governorate is characterized by the availability of suitable conditions for alternative and renewable energy generation projects from various solar and wind sources, as well as from the tidal movement that is characteristic of the Bab el-Mandeb area, given that it is the confluence area of the waters of the Red Sea with the waters of the Arabian Sea extending to the waters of the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. Further, there is a solar power generation project currently being constructed in Mocha.
Similarly, when considering that renewable energy of all types is available for exploitation in the coastal strip of the governorate, if it finds an appropriate amount of attention, Taiz Governorate can be covered with a permanent network of electric energy, which would play an important role in addressing the electricity problem in the governorate and other neighboring governorates such as Lahj, Al-Dhalea, Ibb, and Al-Hudaydah. This would provide an attractive environment for investment and contribute to economic and social development.
In conclusion, it can be said that Taiz governorate is suffering severely from the deterioration of living and humanitarian conditions, and at the same time it is considered a rich governorate in its economic resources, which, if exploited, would enable the residents of the governorate to face and address the economic and social deterioration, as well as the collapse of the living and humanitarian situation that is devastating people’s lives and threatening their lives with hunger and extermination with the continuation of war and siege. In my point of view, this requires, in the current circumstances, the following:
1. Rectifying the imbalances in the military and security situation in the governorate
2. Modernizing and developing the leadership of the local authority through rebuilding its structures, as well as its administrative and economic units, and enabling it to work according to the rules of self-administration.
3. Accelerating the completion of the paving and maintenance of the (Al-Mokha, Al-Kadaha, Taiz City) road and preparing it for active transport movement for all means of land transportation, with the importance of activating the port of Mocha and its airport and making them available for external transportation to and from the governorate in a way that enables the governorate’s residents and local investments to break their isolation and alleviate the siege imposed on Taiz for more than eight years.
4. Paying more attention to public service networks so that electricity, water, and sanitation networks are restored to the governorate, as well as improving education and health services and confronting what hinders the work of state institutions in the governorate. The army and the police should also be removed from educational institutions, including vocational education and training institutes—such as the Technical Institute in Al-Hasib and the National Institute for Administrative Sciences—which are controlled by army and police units and refuse to leave.
5. Giving priority to the field of economic development to developing agricultural sector activities and other activities related to this sector by working in a participatory planning method.
